UN Commission Accuses Israel of Genocide Against Palestinians in Gaza

The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory released a landmark report on Tuesday accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Following a two-year investigation encompassing events from October 7, 2023, to July 31, 2025, the commission determined that Israeli authorities and security forces have carried out four of the five genocidal acts outlined in the 1948 Genocide Convention.

These acts include killing Palestinians, inflicting serious physical or mental harm, deliberately imposing life conditions calculated to bring about partial or total destruction, and implementing policies to prevent births. The report highlights explicit statements from Israeli civilian and military leaders alongside a consistent pattern of actions indicating intent to destroy Palestinians in Gaza as a group.

"The Commission finds that Israel is responsible for the commission of genocide in Gaza," said Navi Pillay, chair of the fact-finding mission. She emphasized, "It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention."

Pillay further held Israeli leadership, including President Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, accountable for orchestrating a genocidal campaign lasting nearly two years. The commission also criticized Israel for failing to conduct meaningful investigations or prosecutions related to these crimes and for disregarding international orders and warnings.

The extensive report detailed the devastating impact of Israeli military operations in Gaza, citing mass casualties, a crippling siege causing starvation, destruction of healthcare and educational infrastructure, direct attacks on children, widespread sexual and gender-based violence, and assaults on cultural and religious sites.

urgent calls were made for Israel to lift its blockade, end starvation policies, permit unhindered humanitarian access, and cease activities linked to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which the commission associated with endangering aid recipients. Additionally, the commission urged UN member states to stop arms sales to Israel, prevent corporate complicity in genocide, and pursue accountability through legal channels.

"The international community cannot stay silent on the genocidal campaign launched by Israel against the Palestinian people in Gaza," Pillay stated. "When clear signs and evidence of genocide emerge, the absence of action to stop it amounts to complicity. Every day of inaction costs lives and erodes the credibility of the international community. All states are under a legal obligation to use all means that are reasonably available to them to stop the genocide in Gaza."

Addressing a press conference in Geneva, Pillay described the genocide in Gaza as a "moral outrage and a legal emergency," urging immediate international action without waiting for further legal rulings.

One aspect not conclusively confirmed by the commission was the forcible transfer of children, a fifth genocidal act under the convention. Commissioner Chris Sidoti clarified, "We have no evidence that category five has arisen in the case of Gaza or the West Bank."

Sidoti also dismissed Israeli Foreign Ministry criticisms of the report as unoriginal and repetitive, stating the dismissals mirrored automated responses and failed to engage substantively with the evidence presented.

The Israeli military offensive on Gaza has reportedly resulted in nearly 65,000 Palestinian deaths since October 2023, leaving the region devastated and experts warning of a famine crisis.